Temperature vs Nature of Food
When considering the temperature vs nature of food, both the physical temperature and the energetic temperature known as its “nature” are important.
Temperature
Warm, cooked food is healing and soothing for digestion. Eating warm foods eases the strain on the organ system and over time optimizes the absorption of crucial nutrients.
According to Chinese medicine, everything you eat must be heated up in your stomach to a 100-degree soup.
Congee
Congee is a medicinal porridge with traditions that date back over two thousand years. Well cooked and very hydrating, congee is an excellent base for including other healthy foods because it makes them easier to digest and absorb.
Nature
Our understanding of food is often quite cultural. One of my favorite concepts from Asian nutritional therapy is that all foods have a unique “nature.”
The essence of each food is not altered by heating or chilling. The warming or cooling effect on the body occurs regardless of how hot or cold the food is when you eat it.
Cucumbers, for example, are cooling even when eaten in hot soup and can be refreshingly cool in summer. Ginger is warming even if eaten as ice cream. Spices warm up each bite in your stomach. Spices such as nutmeg magnify the warming, digestion-promoting congee effect.
Temperature vs Nature of Food
It is quite helpful to use this information about the temperature vs nature of food. Go ahead and warm up a smoothie with ginger or cool down on a hot evening with some warm mint tea.